Archives: Shira Turkl-Rubin

I’m inspired to write and I’m also a little embarrassed that my last post was nearly 2 years ago. I can’t believe that much time has passed… SO much has happened and Soul Flyte has really taken off. Last time I wrote about Soul Flyte it was only our 4th week in business… Now we’ve been in business for 3.5 years! WOW! I guess I was a little wrapped up and left this blog for a while. I’m happy to say that I’m inspired again and would love to bring it back. I hope it will last! I can’t predict that I will write every week or every month, but I’m ok with writing from time to time, it’s important for me to express myself in that way.

In any case – I’ve watched Soul Flyte in Nyack flourish, bringing community together with all of our events, amazing instructors and fabulous students. What I didn’t realize is how much I’ve focused on getting it up and running that I haven’t really focused much on myself. Yes, I’m still a health nut, going to my acupuncture and chiropractor sessions every month and taking my supplements daily – I still take care of myself but I haven’t talked much about it. I still see clients to help heal their bellies but I haven’t filled you in or shared my experiences. I apologize about that. I think I was just so overwhelmed by everything going on in my life that my personal stuff just sort of fell to the wayside.

I just enrolled in Mama Gena’s Mastery program for Womanly Arts. Reading her book called Pussy has made me realize that I’ve totally fallen into the same rut as so many other women – we put others first before ourselves. Time and time again. Well I’m here to let you know that I’m stopping that. I will put myself first, making sure I’m doing what’s right for my truth and my body. I love to write! Why did I ever stop?!

This feels like a whole new journey that I’m about to embark on. The program actually starts in March, but I’ve already started reading her book to give me a jump start. I can’t wait to see what the next few months will bring. Stay tuned!

Sometimes it just takes one smile from a stranger, or a simple Namaste from someone you don’t even know to make your day that much brighter.

On Sunday we celebrated my 30th birthday at our new house in Nyack. While traveling in India, Chad and I had such an incredible time that we decided at the airport on our way home that my birthday party would be Indian themed! On our layover in India to New York we went to a department store, which was full of music, color and amazingness… I bought a sari and Chad bought a few bright colored, “diamond” studded button down shirts to round out our outfits for the bash. We bought bindi’s and masala chai powder for tea. When we came home, Chad found our local Indian restaurant, Keravali in Nanuet, NY and planned out the menu.

He specified making the food without chilis for my belly issues… but the food was still spicy… it’s ok though! They tried and it was still delicious. 🙂

The magic happened on the day of the event. We watched a YouTube video on how to wrap my sari, Chad put on my flower necklace and bindi and then the man from the Indian restaurant rang the bell to deliver the food. He walked in and immediately I saw the smile on his face. He was excited to see me in my sari and to hear the Indian music Chad had carefully selected for the party. Not only was his smile from ear to ear but he was also happy and eager to help. We were working on making masala chai tea from scratch (not the powder) and we had NO clue what we were doing. He overheard us talking about looking in the book and all of a sudden he chimed in. He said, if I may interrupt… this is how you make it and proceeded to fill us in on what would be the best masala chai we’ve ever had (probably because we made it ourselves!)

Fast-forward to the next day, after the incredible food, music and great company, Mr. Indian delivery man came back to collect the trays for the restaurant. He was genuinely concerned about how the food tasted and then proceeded to tell me how excited he was to tell his fiancée about our party and that they also wanted to have one like that too! His sincerity and utter joy made my day. We ended our encounter with a simple yet really meaningful Namaste. I’m grateful for his presence in my life, even for just a short moment. Namaste Mr. delivery man, Namaste.

This past weekend I took part in the education symposium for the Crohns and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA). Along with my friend and colleague Barbara Harrison Klaynan we ran the pediatric portion of the event. Typically at this event there are loads of kids, but this year there were only 2. They happened to be the same age of 15 and it was really awesome. Even though only 2 kids showed up – I believe that we managed to make an impact. Barbara had some great drama therapy activities to play with the kids and I did a few yoga stretches and breathing exercises with them. One of the kids was just recently diagnosed with crohns and he seemed to not be in the greatest place when he first came into the room. By the end, he was talking and laughing with the other kid and I’d like to think that we created a safe space where both children knew that A) they weren’t alone with this disease and B) they could open up to us since we knew exactly what they were going through.

There really is something about ‘being in this together’ and not feeling like you’re completely alone. If you haven’t been to a CCFA event yet, get yourself to one. There are walks and races all around the country and it’s a fantastic place to meet people that are just like us. Colitis and crohns are ‘silent’ diseases since you can’t see them from the outside, and that’s why it’s even more important to stick together. Spread the word to those that you know and love that there are other people out there and we need to connect and stay together.

“Free Yourself” – the wise words of a graffiti artist in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. To me – it means a lot. Ever since I graduated college I’ve worked hard to find “my place” in the career world. Everything that I’ve done up until this point was crucial in helping to shape me into who I am today. Let me tell you though – getting here was tough. My mind Read more »

The negative stories we tell ourselves ring true and might even turn into disease.

What if you woke up every single morning and before you got out of bed said 3 positive words or phrases to yourself? I’ve realized that we become our thoughts. Even if you woke up this morning and you didn’t sleep well, you feel sick, Read more »

Have you heard about coconut aminos? Essentially it’s the sap from a coconut that’s filled with amino acids, which rebuild muscle tissue, boost the immune system and raise physical energy levels – along with much, much more! I just learned about this magical condiment and used it in one of my recipes in place of soy sauce. Chad is doing the Whole Read more »

Let’s talk about Fear. I’ve come to realize that this thing we call fear might possibly be ingrained into our cells. No matter what we do to overcome it, it will always be lurking in the background. This is something I’ve been working on for a while now. What I’ve realized is that – because my grandparents were in the holocaust – there was serious fear Read more »

Since moving to Sparkill, NY in Rockland County I’ve had the pleasure of working with a few fantastic yoga/meditation students. Recently a local woman called me who was looking for someone to help heal her belly blues. She wanted to learn meditation, yoga and ways to practice on her own at home – what a perfect match we were! The Universe played its part as matchmaker as well as Google! I have so much gratitude in my heart as she wrote me a beautiful testimonial – here it is below: Read more »

Since it’s been cold and rainy for the last 24 hours and won’t be stopping until noon tomorrow, my body needs extra warmth. Covering up with warm clothes, blankets and thick socks isn’t even cutting it! I decided to concoct a delicious warming tea that will surely warm me from the inside out – which is exactly what I need. Turmeric aids inflammation Read more »

This past week Chad and I ventured up to the Berkshires to Beckett, MA where we attended an overnight at the Kushi Institute. Michio Kushi and his wife Aveline founded the institute in the 70’s as a macrobiotic retreat and training center. People from all walks of life attend the institute since the macrobiotic style of eating has shown to help many diseases such as different types of cancer, IBD and much more. Read more »